{"id":709472,"date":"2026-04-13T06:45:43","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T06:45:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/709472\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T06:45:43","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T06:45:43","slug":"nba-play-in-games-set-heat-hornets-magic-76ers-matchups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/709472\/","title":{"rendered":"NBA Play-In Games Set: Heat-Hornets, Magic-76ers Matchups"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"submission-link-wrapper\"><a href=\"https:\/\/forms.nationaltoday.com\/news?location=Boston%2C+MA&amp;city=Boston&amp;type=Update+Existing+Story&amp;headline=NBA+Play-In+Games+Set%3A+Heat-Hornets%2C+Magic-76ers+Matchups&amp;page=https%3A%2F%2Fnationaltoday.com%2Fus%2Fma%2Fboston%2Fnews%2F2026%2F04%2F13%2Fnba-play-in-games-set-heat-hornets-magic-76ers-matchups%2F\" class=\"submission-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a<\/a><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/69dc5e5520db4.jpg\" alt=\"A cubist, geometric painting depicting an abstracted NBA basketball game, with the players' figures broken down into overlapping angular shapes in a vibrant color palette.\" width=\"1344\" height=\"768\" class=\"news-image\"\/>The NBA&#8217;s play-in tournament sets the stage for high-stakes matchups between several top Eastern Conference contenders.Boston Today<\/p>\n<p>The NBA regular season has concluded, and the play-in tournament matchups are now set. The Miami Heat will face the Charlotte Hornets, while the Orlando Magic will take on the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference play-in games.<\/p>\n<p>        Why it matters<\/p>\n<p>The play-in tournament determines the final two playoff spots in each conference, adding an extra layer of drama and excitement to the end of the NBA season. These matchups feature several high-profile teams and players vying for a chance to make the playoffs.<\/p>\n<p>                The details<\/p>\n<p>The Heat and Hornets will square off in one play-in game, with the winner earning the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Meanwhile, the Magic and 76ers will battle for the 8th seed. Both games will be single-elimination, with the losers facing elimination from the postseason.<\/p>\n<p>        The play-in tournament games will take place on April 16, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>          The players<\/p>\n<p>          Miami Heat<\/p>\n<p>An NBA team based in Miami, Florida that clinched a play-in tournament spot after a strong regular season.<\/p>\n<p>Charlotte Hornets<\/p>\n<p>An NBA team based in Charlotte, North Carolina that also earned a play-in tournament berth.<\/p>\n<p>Orlando Magic<\/p>\n<p>An NBA team based in Orlando, Florida that secured a play-in spot after a late-season surge.<\/p>\n<p>Philadelphia 76ers<\/p>\n<p>An NBA team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that will face the Magic in the other Eastern Conference play-in game.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/forms.nationaltoday.com\/news?location=Boston%2C+MA&amp;city=Boston&amp;type=Upload+Story+Photos&amp;headline=NBA+Play-In+Games+Set%3A+Heat-Hornets%2C+Magic-76ers+Matchups&amp;page=https%3A%2F%2Fnationaltoday.com%2Fus%2Fma%2Fboston%2Fnews%2F2026%2F04%2F13%2Fnba-play-in-games-set-heat-hornets-magic-76ers-matchups%2F\" class=\"submission-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Got photos? Submit your photos here. \u203a<\/a><br \/>\n                What\u2019s next<\/p>\n<p>The winners of the Heat-Hornets and Magic-76ers play-in games will advance to face the #5 and #6 seeds in the Eastern Conference playoffs.<\/p>\n<p>          The takeaway<\/p>\n<p>The NBA&#8217;s play-in tournament continues to add intrigue and drama to the end of the regular season, with several high-profile teams and players fighting for the final playoff spots in each conference.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a The NBA&#8217;s play-in tournament sets the stage for high-stakes matchups&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":709473,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3778],"tags":[7,144,295,189,3881,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-709472","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-miami-heat","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-heat","10":"tag-miami","11":"tag-miami-heat","12":"tag-miamiheat","13":"tag-nba"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116396054398566209","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/709472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=709472"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/709472\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/709473"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=709472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=709472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=709472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}